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Stalking Nabokov

Selected Essays
by Brian Boyd
Stalking Nabokov: Selected Essays. Columbia Univ. Nov. 2011. c.416p. bibliog. index. ISBN 9780231158565. $35. LIT
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This appealing (albeit unfortunately titled) collection of essays, addresses, and introductions written for an assortment of audiences by a noted Nabokov biographer and scholar is a delight. Boyd (University Distinguished Professor of English, Univ. of Auckland, New Zealand; Vladimir Nabokov) does more than an able job of exploring Nabokov's varied intellectual interests—beyond what he could convey in his two-volume biography—from examining Nabokov's lepidopterological pursuits to trenchant assessments of Nabokov as a writer. Boyd dissects several major novels and offers comparisons between Nabokov and writers as diverse as Tolstoy and Machado de Assis.
VERDICT As is common with such collections, there's a degree of repetitiveness, with some facts, anecdotes, and quoted passages found in more than one piece. But readers can skip around among the aspects of Nabokov that interest the most—or, for example, they can read the several chapters on Nabokov's scientific interests to broaden their own understanding. A readable collection on one of the 20th century's greatest writers, this will be enjoyed by Nabokov fans and students of 20th-century literature.
Reviewed by Sharon E. Reidt, Marlboro Coll. Lib., VT , Sep 15, 2011
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